Calculate the Average: Finding the Mean of 2, 6, 8, and 4

Q: What's the difference between mean and average?

They're the same thing! Mean and average both refer to adding all numbers and dividing by how many you have. Don't worry - they're interchangeable terms.

Q: Do I need to put the numbers in order first?

No! For calculating the mean, order doesn't matter. Whether you add 2 + 6 + 8 + 4 or 8 + 2 + 4 + 6, you'll get the same sum of 20.

Q: What if my answer isn't a whole number?

That's totally normal! Averages can be decimals or fractions. For example, the average of 1, 2, and 5 would be $ \frac{8}{3} = 2.67 $.

Q: How can I check if my average is reasonable?

Your average should be between the smallest and largest numbers. Here, since our numbers are 2, 4, 6, and 8, the average of 5 makes sense because it's between 2 and 8!

Q: Why do we divide by the count of numbers?

Think of it as sharing equally! If you have 20 candies to split among 4 people, each person gets $ \frac{20}{4} = 5 $ candies. The average works the same way.

Mean Calculation with Four Numbers

Calculate the average of

$2$ , $6$ , $8$ , and $4$ .

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Step-by-step video solution

Watch the teacher solve the problem with clear explanations

00:05 Let's calculate the average.

00:08 To find the average, divide the total sum by the number of terms.

00:12 First, we add up all the numbers.

00:17 Then, divide this sum by four, because there are four numbers.

00:45 And that's how we find the solution!

Step-by-step written solution

Follow each step carefully to understand the complete solution

Understand the problem

Calculate the average of

$2$ , $6$ , $8$ , and $4$ .

Step-by-step solution

To calculate the average of the numbers 2, 6, 8, and 4, we will follow these steps:

Step 1: Calculate the sum of the numbers.

The numbers given are $2$ , $6$ , $8$ , and $4$ . Therefore, we find the sum as follows:

$2 + 6 + 8 + 4 = 20$ .

Step 2: Count the number of numbers.

We have a total of 4 numbers.

Step 3: Calculate the average by dividing the sum by the count.

The average is calculated by dividing the total sum by the count of the numbers:

$\text{Average} = \frac{20}{4} = 5$ .

Thus, the average of the numbers $2$ , $6$ , $8$ , and $4$ is $\boxed{5}$ .

Final Answer

Key Points to Remember

Essential concepts to master this topic

Formula: Average equals sum divided by count of numbers
Technique: Add all values first: 2 + 6 + 8 + 4 = 20
Check: Multiply answer by count: 5 × 4 = 20 matches sum ✓

Common Mistakes

Avoid these frequent errors

Dividing by wrong count of numbers
Don't count numbers incorrectly or divide by 5 instead of 4 = wrong average like 4! This happens when students miscount or include zero accidentally. Always carefully count how many actual numbers you're given.

Practice Quiz

Test your knowledge with interactive questions

If the balls below are divided so that each column in the table contains an equal number, then how many balls will there be in each column?

FAQ

Everything you need to know about this question

What's the difference between mean and average?

They're the same thing! Mean and average both refer to adding all numbers and dividing by how many you have. Don't worry - they're interchangeable terms.

Do I need to put the numbers in order first?

No! For calculating the mean, order doesn't matter. Whether you add 2 + 6 + 8 + 4 or 8 + 2 + 4 + 6, you'll get the same sum of 20.

What if my answer isn't a whole number?

That's totally normal! Averages can be decimals or fractions. For example, the average of 1, 2, and 5 would be $\frac{8}{3} = 2.67$ .

How can I check if my average is reasonable?

Your average should be between the smallest and largest numbers. Here, since our numbers are 2, 4, 6, and 8, the average of 5 makes sense because it's between 2 and 8!

Why do we divide by the count of numbers?

Think of it as sharing equally! If you have 20 candies to split among 4 people, each person gets $\frac{20}{4} = 5$ candies. The average works the same way.

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